THE GLOBAL WINDOW OF TURKISH FOOD AND AGRICULTURE The Global Window of Turkish Food and Agriculture Sector
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Press release…
In February, exports of fresh fruits and vegetables, which are Turkiye’s important export items, exceeded 255 million dollars. Exports increased by 2 percent compared to the same month of the previous year.
Nejdat Sin, Chair of the Mediterranean Exporters’ Associations (AKİB) Coordinator and Chair of the Mediterranean Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Exporters’ Association, made a statement regarding the export of fresh fruits and vegetables.
How did the Russia-Ukraine war affect the export of fresh fruits and vegetables?
Nejdat Sin told that exporting companies came together with the organization of the Mediterranean Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Exporters’ Association on Thursday, March 10, in order to evaluate the developments due to the crisis between Russia and Ukraine and to produce solutions for the problems that emerged due to the crisis.
Noting that Turkey’s biggest market in fresh fruit and vegetable exports is Russia and Ukraine is in the 4th place, he said that they are mobilizing to minimize the effects of the war that started on February 24 between these two countries.
What are the problems of fresh fruit and vegetable exporters?
Sin said, “In February, our exports to Russia decreased by 26 percent to 58.7 million dollars and our exports to Ukraine increased by 34 percent to 19.5 million dollars. Regarding these two countries, we are working on the procurement of receivables of our exporters, supply chain and alternative distribution channels, on the other hand, we are conducting multi-dimensional research to boost market diversity.”
Stating that the collection process in the export markets in the fresh fruit and vegetable sector is 2-3 months behind, Sin added, “We are trading in local currencies in the Russian and Ukrainian markets. Due to the excessive depreciation of the currencies of both countries, our exporters have been seriously aggrieved.”
“Our receivables have melted by over 50%. On the other hand, some banks do not transact with Ruble. We cannot convert our ruble account into dollars or any other currency. This situation raises our suffering even more. In order to solve these problems, we are trying to eliminate the grievances of our exporters by acting in coordination with all relevant institutions and organizations, especially our Ministry of Trade,” Sin concluded…
